Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputy McGrath for raising the issue. I am responding on behalf of the Minister for Justice, Deputy McEntee.

The Deputy will appreciate that under section 26 of the Garda Síochána Act 2005, as amended, the Garda Commissioner is responsible for the management and administration of Garda business, which includes the allocation of Garda resources. The Minister for Justice has no statutory role in regard to these operational policing matters. The Minister is assured that Garda management keeps the distribution of resources under continual review in the context of policing priorities and crime trends to ensure their optimal use. I understand it is a matter for the divisional chief superintendent to determine the optimal distribution of duties among the personnel available to him or her, having regard to the profile of each area within the division.

The Department of Justice is committed to ensuring that An Garda Síochána has the resources it needs to perform its critical role in the community. In budget 2023 an unprecedented €2.14 billion was allocated to An Garda Síochána, representing an increase of €78 million on 2022. This includes provision for the recruitment of 1,000 new gardaí and more than 400 Garda staff. I am informed that as of 31 August 2022, there were 399 Garda members assigned to the Tipperary division. Clonmel district is comprised of five stations with 76 Garda members assigned to it. This represents an increase of more than 4% since the end of December 2019. The district is supported by 17 Garda staff assigned to Clonmel station as of the end of August this year.

The Government has committed to building a new Garda station in Clonmel as part of the justice sector private-public partnership. This is being done alongside a proposed new station in Macroom, County Cork, and a family law complex at Hammond Lane, Dublin 7. Planning permission was granted for the new station in 2021. The Department continues to engage with An Garda Síochána, the Office of Public Works and the National Development Finance Agency with a view to progressing the project.

The construction of the new Garda station in Clonmel is an important development for policing in the area. Once completed the station will provide a modern, fit-for-purpose facility for Garda members and staff as well as the public interacting with gardaí. The Deputy may be aware that the Garda Commissioner is continuing the roll-out of the new Garda operating model. The operating model is designed to make each division the central unit of policing administration rather than the current smaller district model and will provide more front-line gardaí, increased Garda visibility and a wider range of policing services for local areas.

In the period 2017 to 31 August 2022, 875.5 Garda members were reassigned to operational roles under the Garda reassignment initiative, and a further 306 posts were identified as suitable for civilianisation and redeployment in line with the programme for Government commitment to boost the redeployment of Garda members from non-core duties to front-line duties for the benefit of communities across the country, including that of Clonmel.

The Minister is conscious of the particular crime concerns facing rural communities. The publication just last month of Rural Safety Plan 2022–2024 by the Minister of State, Deputy James Browne, seeks to address these and provide support information to rural communities. The plan is available at www.gov.ie/justice.

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